Re: Cholesterol question/Niacin

[Guest guest]

Your Dad's liver probably made too much LDL cholesterol causing the

heart attack. Niacin is not suppossed to lower total cholesterol

levels but it increases HDL (healthy cholesterol)and improves the ratio

of good to bad. It has a great track record of preventing heart

attacks even though total cholesterol is usually not lowered.

Interestingly the Pfizer drug company invented a drug: torcetrapib

which raised HDL like Niacin but was found to cause some heart problems

and increased deaths.

Niacin can raise liver enzymes more often than statins.

The statin/liver risk is overblown. About one or two per thousand will

have liver enzyme elevation on statin. If monitoring is properly done

the elevation is detected and the statin stopped. If not dected a small

persentage of these would go on to liver failure.